Parents of young men who died at different schools want to put a stop to deaths from hazing. They spoke Friday, Feb. 23, 2018, at #PUSH, a summit in Greenville for anti-hazing.
Ken Ruinard/Independent Mail

The parents of former Clemson University student Tucker Hipps will appear on NBC's news program "Dateline" in an episode on hazing at schools and fraternities.

The episode, called "The College Fraternity Crisis," is scheduled to air at 7 p.m. Sunday on NBC.

Hipps, a 19-year-old Clemson University sophomore and fraternity pledge, was found dead on Lake Hartwell near the State 93 bridge on Sept. 22, 2014, hours after going on a run with about 30 members of his fraternity.

According to records and investigators, the run happened between 5:30 a.m. and 6:30 a.m., and Hipps' fraternity members noticed him missing later, at breakfast. The 911 call to report him missing was made several hours afterward, at 1:45 p.m.

His parents, Gary and Cindy Hipps, have contended that hazing is what killed him and have focused their attention on trying to curb fraternity hazing and hold universities accountable in the wake of his death.

A promo image from the "Dateline" episode on NBC in which Tucker Hipps's parents appear.(Photo: Submitted/NBC News)

"I think it's important for people to be educated about hazing," Cindy Hipps said. "I believe that this generation of young people needs to change the culture before they are the person that gets hazed to death."

The Hipps hope to educate parents and students on these dangers by going on the show, Cindy Hipps said.

Clemson University as well as the local Sigma Phi Epsilon chapter and the national fraternity have denied responsibility for Tucker Hipps' death.

Clemson and the fraternity settled a lawsuit with the Hipps family last year, and some terms of that settlement, including a $250,000 payout from the school, were made public last August.

NBC's Andrea Canning will host the "Dateline" episode, which will also feature 14 other parents who say they've lost children to hazing.